development report 2012 - UMAR

Development Report 2012
Development by the priorities of SDS – Integration of measures to achieve sustainable development
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to its extreme increase in the initial phase, dropped last
year, but has slightly increased again and now amounts
to approximately 6.4% of utilised agricultural land. As
this proportion lags considerably behind the target
value set in the plan of organic farming development 283 ,
producers will receive additional financial incentives in
the conversion period from 2012 onwards. Along with an
increased demand which is likely to be accelerated by the
share of organic food required in public procurement 284 ,
there remain many unexploited opportunities for the
further development of this production method, which
is most desirable from the environmental aspect.
The environmental role of forests became
increasingly important due to a more rapid increase
in wood increment and supply, while the relatively
low economic utilisation of forests did not improve in
2010. Large forest areas in Slovenia have without doubt
a positive impact on the environment, although from
the economic aspect, this impact is difficult to measure.
Forests prevent soil erosion, provide protection against
negative weather influences, improve water supplies,
increase biodiversity and are important sinks for carbon
dioxide, which is the main cause of the greenhouse
effect. At the same time, forests are also a source of
ecologically acceptable raw materials and energy, and
are still not sufficiently exploited in Slovenia. The removal
of trees and the production of raw-wood categories are
increasing in the long term; however, due to a more rapid
increase in wood increment, the intensity of tree felling
is relatively low. In 2010, it dropped further and felling
volumes therefore amounted to 41.6% of the annual
volume of increment (in 2009, it was 42.3%). The total
volume of felling remained at approximately the same
level as in the previous year, which represented only 63%
of the possible volume of felling according to the forest
management plans (in 2009, it amounted to 66% of the
possible volume of felling) 285 . Tree-tending removal,
which is vital for forest development and therefore the
most extensive, increased by 8.8%. As there were no
major natural catastrophes or problems with forest pests
in 2010, the share of tree-tending removal in the total
tree removal has increased, but has still remained at a
relatively low level (it amounted to approximately 71%,
while in 2009 it was 65%). A lower felling volume does
not necessarily mean sustainable forest management,
as it can cause problems being reflected by a too low
tending of forest stands, which results in their stronger
susceptibility to various harmful impacts. Increased
felling of the growing forest stock also provides for higher
(economic) utilisation of the available natural resource at
the first link in the chain and at all further links in the
forestry wood processing chain.
283
Action Plan for the Development of Organic Agriculture in
Slovenia by 2015, 2005.
284
Decree on Green Public Procurement, OG RS no. 102/2011.
285
Source: The Slovenian Forest Service Report on Slovenian
Forests for 2010 and 2011.
5.2. Sustained population growth
The population in Slovenia increased further in 2011,
while net migration, which was the main reason for
population growth during the period 2005–2009, has
dropped significantly in the past two years. By 1 July
2011, the population had increased to 2,052,496 (an
increase of 3,235 on the previous year). The population
in Slovenia exceeded 2 million in 2005, and, since then,
the main reason for the increase has been high net
migration from abroad related to accelerated economic
growth and Slovenia’s accession to the EU. Enterprises
began to experience shortages in certain domestic
occupational profiles, especially in construction, and
therefore hired foreign workers more frequently. In 2008
alone, 30,693 new permanent residents immigrated to
Slovenia from abroad and only 12,109 people emigrated
from Slovenia; the net migration rate thus reached 9.2
per 1,000 inhabitants, which was among the highest in
the EU. Among the reasons for the increased immigration
rate in 2008 was Slovenia’s accession to the Schengen
Agreement. This also involved fictitious immigration
to Slovenia, as foreigners, having obtained residence
permits in the Republic of Slovenia, sought employment
or the opportunity to live in other countries being parties
to this Agreement. In 2009, Slovenia’s net migration rate
decreased to 5.6 per 1,000 inhabitants, which was still
among the highest rates in the EU, whereas, in 2010, the
rate fell to almost zero. The reason for the almost zero net
migration figure was a significant decline in immigration
to Slovenia (48% less than the previous year); however,
the emigration rate also dropped (by 16%). In the first
half of 2011, the immigration rate slightly exceeded
the emigration rate in Slovenia, which resulted in a
slightly positive migration coefficient, i.e. 0.6 per 1,000
inhabitants, whereby the immigration and emigration
rates were lower than for the same period in 2010.
Since 2006, the population has also been increasing
due to the positive natural increase rate. After more
than 20 years of decline, the number of births reached
the lowest level in 2003 (17,321); at that time, the total
fertility rate was 1.20. Since 2004, the number of births
has been growing; in 2010, a total of 22,343 children were
born in Slovenia (487 more than the previous year) and
the total fertility rate increased to 1.57, approaching the
EU average. The average age at which women give birth
continues to increase. In 2010, the average childbearing
age was 30.3 years, while the age at birth of the first child
was 28.7. In 2006 – for the first time in ten years – the
number of births exceeded the number of deaths, which
is a negligible increase. Positive trends in the field of
infant mortality continue; in 2010 – with 2.5 deaths per
1,000 live born infants – it remained among the lowest
in the EU 286 .
286
A lower infant mortality rate in 2010 was only recorded in
Finland and Portugal.